When It Comes to Protecting Alaskan Salmon, Alaskans Deserve a Voice
Monday, October 8, 2018

Sealaska has been actively engaged in supporting healthy salmon habitat in Alaska for decades by helping develop policies and recommending actions toward ensuring these salmon runs remain healthy and viable into the future. 

Ballot Measure 1 in the upcoming Alaska general election seeks to eliminate Alaska’s current science-based fish habitat protections and replace them with red tape and complex regulations, which threatens Alaska’s economy without solving the problem. The writers and funders of Ballot Measure 1 did not consult a diverse representation of groups closest to this issue nor the Alaskan agencies that would enforce these untested regulations. Current regulations protecting Alaskan salmon runs are annually reviewed by experts at federal, state and local agencies. On a daily basis, Sealaska collaborates with organizations like Huna Totem, the Nature Conservancy, the National Forest Service, the State of Alaska and others to ensure salmon runs are functioning and healthy on our land. For the policy to be effective, all affected interests should be at the table.

Sealaska supports current regulations and effective protection of freshwater ecosystems that are in place in Alaska, but we value any efforts to improve these regulations and protections where necessary. We encourage a continued culture of collaboration among entities that are on the ground doing the work to protect salmon, while also contributing to a viable economy.

Sealaska supports Stand for Alaska and voting “no” on Ballot Measure 1 on November 6, 2018. Learn more about Stand for Alaska and Ballot Measure 1 at StandForAK.com.